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Key Takeaways from LFJs Special Digital Event: Key Trends and Drivers for Litigation Funding in 2023

On January 25, 2023, Litigation Finance Journal hosted a special digital event: Key Trends and Drivers for Litigation Funding in 2023. The hour-long panel discussion and audience Q&A was live-streamed on LinkedIn, and featured expert speakers including William Farrell, Jr. (WF), Co-Founder, Managing Director and General Counsel of Longford Capital, Laina Hammond (LH), Co-Founder, Managing Director and Senior Investment Officer of Validity Finance, and Louis Young (LY), Co-Founder and CEO of Augusta Ventures. The discussion was moderated by Rebecca Berrebi (RB), Founder and CEO of Avenue 33, LLC.

The discussion spanned a broad spectrum of key issues facing the litigation funding industry in 2023. Below are some key takeaways from the event:

RB: How does your underwriting change, given the varied risks across different legal sectors? Do you have different IRR requirements for different case types or jurisdictions?  

LH: At various points in time in our process, we are going to be assessing the risk of total loss. Antitrust, treaty arbitration, patent cases are riskier. When we’re calculating expected risk of loss, we take into account the various factors that make a case more risky—jurisdiction, collectability, other factors that dictate the IRR range. That is how we tie the risk factor to IRR, so the returns reflect the risk commensurate for any situation.

WF: At Longford, our underwriting process remains the same across all legal sectors.  But risk assessment is unique across opportunities.  We look at 50 different characteristics for risk assessment.  At Longford, and I imagine the same is true at funders like Validity and Augusta, there is a very strong demand for our financing, so we are able to pick only the most meritorious cases, rather than pricing risk for a range of cases.

LY: We have a very controlled process in our underwriting, and it’s conducted in a very stock-standard framework. But that framework is a continual iterative process. Our underwriting changes as we resolve cases through wins and losses, where you learn things that you didn’t know in underwriting. If we had to build a portfolio like we did for our first portfolio, which was 60-70 investments with $200MM invested—if that took us three years to build at the time, it would take us four or five years now, given the fact that we’ve learned so many other things as we’ve invested. Changes in financial modeling have become far more complex and nuanced as to the particular cases, so the outcomes and scenarios that we run now are far more detailed.

RB: The last prolonged recession helped jumpstart the litigation funding industry in the US. If we do have a prolonged recession, what do you see as the prospects for the industry this time around? Can we expect the same growth post-recession? 

LH: I think it’s tricky to accurately predict the impact of recessions on specialty industries like Litigation Finance, especially when the recession arises out of complicated geopolitical factors. That said, it’s entirely likely that a recession provides a boost for demand.  Legal services will always be in demand, and the cost of legal disputes is going to continue to rise. In tough economic conditions, companies might be pushed to consider litigation finance as an alternative to the self-funding that they historically use for their litigation. This could also lead to an infusion of capital into the market, as investors look for ways to diversify into alternative assets that are uncorrelated to the broader market.

LY: I don’t know if the last recession did jump start the industry. I remember one of the first trips I did across the U.S. – this was around 2014 or so. And there were a whole set of law firms who didn’t know about litigation funding, so they were taking on the risk themselves—they were in effect acting as litigation funders. I think what really spurred litigation funding was the entrepreneurial bent of these law firms, who said to themselves ‘ok we’ve been taking this risk on for our clients, and here is a way we can de-risk ourselves.’ It was that mindset, and it happened so quick. In 2014, I introduced myself, and it was like, ‘Nice to meet you, here’s the door.’ Then two years later, it was happening. You just had very savvy, sophisticated people within the law firms who saw litigation funding for what it was, and they’ve become champions of it. And those same law firms are championing litigation funding even more now, and that will spur the industry forward.

RB: What insurance products look most interesting right now, and are there any you’d like to see in the future?

WF: Over the past two years, the insurance industry seems to have identified our industry as a new and attractive source of business for the insurance industry. There are significant synergies and similarities between litigation finance investments and insurance products, and for the moment, insurance markets seem to be most comfortable placing insurance on judgement preservation, and that is because they perceive cases at that stage of the lifecycle to be more easily understood, evaluated, and priced. But other products are popping up every day—insurance wrappers, which can be around an entire fund, or offer judgement preservation or principal protection, or they could be more bespoke and wrapped around particular subsets of investments.

Offering insurance products for individual investors within a fund, uniquely designed for that particular investor’s risk tolerances is on the horizon, and will be made available to investors and funds in our industry. At the end of the day, the costs of these products will be most important in determining whether the Litigation Finance industry will be able to find a way to work with the insurance industry. The cost of these products will be taken directly from the returns that might otherwise be achieved without insurance, and the evaluation of these costs against the risk that is being protected against, is what will determine whether insurance becomes a meaningful part of our business.

RB: What are your thoughts on the 60 Minutes piece, and the resulting publicity for the industry? Is this a net-positive—all publicity is good publicity, or would the industry benefit from being more under-the-radar, as there might be a mainstream outcry over a single bad actor that could malign the entire industry?

WF: The Litigation Finance industry has made great strides over the past 10 years, particularly when it comes to awareness and acceptance of our offerings among all of the effected constituencies. Litigation Finance also levels the economic playing field, to where disputes among companies are resolved on the merits, rather than on the financial wherewithal and strengths/weaknesses of the litigants. So it’s good for the legal system. I think that the more awareness we can achieve, the more acceptance and more use we will see. I am opposed to flying under the radar—I like the idea that the more that people know about our industry, the more they will see that we are doing good, because we are helping people access justice which might not otherwise be there for them.

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LLoyd’s Extends Litica’s Coverholder Approval to Include Europe

By Harry Moran and 4 others |

Whilst litigation funders often dominate the conversation in the legal funding space, the role and influence of litigation insurers has only grown in recent years as they have expanded their provision of litigation risk solutions to claimants, funders, law firms, and in-house counsel.

An announcement from Litica revealed that Lloyd’s has extended its Coverholder approval to include Europe, thereby approving Litica Europe to underwrite commercial litigation insurance on behalf of certain Lloyd’s Syndicates. This latest extension from Lloyd’s follows on from its existing Coverholder approval for Litica in both the United Kingdom and Asia-Pacific.

In the announcement, Litica explained that this approval authorises Litica Europe to underwrite insurance for policies with adverse cost limits of up to €15 million, which it says is “one of the most substantial and material levels of authority granted by Lloyd’s Syndicates in the commercial litigation insurance space.” This extension will also allow Litica to offer bespoke solutions to the European market, allowing for tailored products that are more suited to Europe than the UK.

Litica also highlighted that it has now underwritten over €2.2bn of risk to date, with cases spanning a range of litigation and arbitration.

More information about the approval and Litica’s ongoing work can be found in the full announcement here.

Renovus Capital Partners’ Portfolio Company Angeion Group Acquires Donlin Recano

By Harry Moran and 4 others |

Angeion Group, a premier provider of end-to-end group litigation services, today announced the acquisition of Donlin Recano & Co. LLC, a distinguished leader in bankruptcy administration. This strategic acquisition enhances Angeion Group’s comprehensive suite of tech-enabled legal services, reinforcing its position as the market leader in group litigation support.

With a legacy of serving over 200 national clients across diverse industries, Donlin Recano brings decades of expertise in claims management, noticing, and bankruptcy case administration. By integrating its operations, Angeion Group is poised to set a new industry standard—leveraging technology, precision, and innovation to redefine the way complex bankruptcy matters are managed.

“Bringing Donlin Recano into the Angeion Group family allows us to apply our hallmark commitment to accuracy, innovation, and efficiency to an already well-respected leader in the restructuring space,” said Steven Weisbrot, CEO of Angeion Group. “Our vision is clear: we will continue to listen to our clients, anticipate their evolving needs, and deliver transformative solutions that exceed expectations.”

This acquisition marks a significant expansion of Angeion Group’s service offerings, seamlessly integrating Donlin Recano’s proven expertise with Angeion’s award-winning technology and client-first approach. Together, the combined division, Angeion Group Bankruptcy Services, will provide an elevated standard of service to law firms, financial institutions, and corporate clients navigating the complexities of bankruptcy and restructuring.

“We’re excited to see the momentum that Angeion Group is building both through organic and inorganic growth,” said Greg Gladstone, Vice President at Renovus. “Donlin Recano seamlessly complements Angeion Group’s extensive legal services capabilities by adding bankruptcy expertise, unlocking significant opportunities for growth and delivering enhanced value to our clients.”

With this acquisition, Angeion Group continues its trajectory of strategic growth and industry leadership, reaffirming its commitment to delivering best-in-class tech-enabled legal services across the litigation and bankruptcy sectors.

About Angeion Group

Angeion Group is a leading provider of legal notice and settlement administration services, leveraging technology, expertise, and data-driven strategies to deliver best-in-class solutions for complex litigation matters. With a reputation for excellence, innovation, and unwavering client commitment, Angeion Group continues to redefine industry standards.

IQuote Announces New Dubai Office to Support Global Technology Strategy

By Harry Moran and 4 others |

In the ongoing struggle to carve out opportunities within the competitive legal funding market, smaller regional funders are increasingly looking to technology-oriented strategies to try to grow their operations and compete with the established market leading companies.

An article in Insider Media covers an announcement from litigation funder IQuote Limited, who are expanding their operations with the opening of a new office in Dubai. IQuote, which was founded in Manchester in 2016, sees the Dubai office as a major step in its strategy to strengthen its technology capabilities, with plans to embark on a recruitment drive to staff this new office.

Along with this expansion to a new region, IQuote is also working on bolstering its Manchester office with new hires to build on its existing strength in the European market. IQuote is looking to recruit for several positions, including a Head of European Opportunities, Data and Risk Analysts to enhance financial forecasting, and auditors for account management and reporting. 

Craig Cornick, CEO of IQuote, highlighted Dubai’s place as “a global innovation hub”, with the new local footprint allowing the company to “tap into a wealth of talent and technological resources.” Explaining IQuote’s unified approach across these different regions, Cornick said, “By strengthening both our Manchester and Dubai teams, we’re ensuring that we have the resources and expertise needed to meet the increasing demand for our services across Europe and beyond.”